Rivals ended on a shocking note and now Aidan Turner weighs in on Declan’s potential future with Cameron, that steamy kiss between Rupert and Tuggy, and more.
During an exclusive interview with Us WeeklyTurner, 41, began by addressing his character, Declan, finishing the first season on top — only to find out that his wife, Maud (Victoria Smurfette), was leaving for an acting opportunity.
“(Their relationship) feels very real. It feels very true. Suddenly it feels like the things many couples go through in marriage. You can so quickly not see that person again,” Turner said of how Declan and Maud the connection decreased throughout the season. “The person is there and you coexist, but you don’t see them, you don’t really engage with what they’re going through, and you’re not emotionally present.”
The actor developed the context before diving into Season 1adding: “Life became quite busy for them and quite stressful and took them in different directions. There are all kinds of tangents going on and they just haven’t caught up to themselves. I don’t think Declan actually saw this (and when he did) it was fleeting. He has seen this for many years. He has neglected his family and he has neglected his wife.
Rivals put in a lot of work to make their cast very different on the show. Based on Jilly Cooper’s novel of the same name, Disney+ and Hulu’s Rivals centers around the feud between two men fighting for control of a television station in 1980s Britain. It stars a cast including David Tennant, (…)
After Maude’s years of unhappiness, Turner was not surprised when Declanthe marriage eventually broke up.
“She sacrificed a lot. Declan is slowly enlightening – it comes in waves where he’ll get a lot of it and then he’ll kind of try to shake it off because of the guilt and shame that surrounds it and he’ll be back at it. Then it will come back again,” he explained. “At the end of the season, it really shines a light on the damage he’s done.”
Turner doesn’t place all the blame on Declan, though. “I don’t think he’s entirely to blame for all of this, but he has the lion’s share,” he added. “We’ve always felt (offscreen) that you have to play everything very true. It can be high, you can style it and turn up the volume on everything, but it has to be rooted in concrete and it has to be authentic.”
Based on Jilly Cooper’s novel of the same name, Disney+ and Hulu Rivals centers around a feud between two men fighting for control of a television station in 1980s Britain. Turner’s character, Declan, finds himself in the midst of Rupert (Alex Hassell) and Tony’s (David Tennant) rush to the finish line, which ultimately affects his personal life.
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“It always seemed to me that Declan had a very complex and complicated relationship with his wife and his family. But it always felt very real to me. So I always had a door in that I didn’t feel like I had to fight for. He’s basically a good guy,” Turner noted us. “He loves his family and just wants to be with them. But of course there’s ego and there’s all these other things that get complicated. Life is hard and complicated and not what you think it will be. It’s just an understanding of it.
Not every viewer found themselves rooting for Declan and Maude to do so. In fact, others picked up some chemistry between Declan and Cameron (Nafesa Williams), which seemed undeniable.
“With the Cameron situation, they work very well together. And in (the book) there’s a project they’re both working on out of the country that takes them both away,” Turner teased us. “And I think their friendship and their relationship is put to the test. That’s all I can say. I don’t want to say too much.”
There is also a small problem that Declan warns Rupert about without touching his daughter Tagi. Rupert tried to stay away from Taggi for most of the season, but the fan-favorite couple finally gave in during the finale and shared a very romantic kiss.
“These are two sides of the same thing that can go either way. Declan really respects Rupert and sees value in Rupert. I think they’re friends and that friendship and that bond is getting closer and closer,” Turner said. “But he told him to stay away from his daughter.”
He continued: “I think he’s going to find this (kiss) very, very difficult. I don’t think it’s something he would accept. There could be a moment — there could be a big moment.”
Rivals currently streaming on Hulu in the US and Disney+ internationally.
